#juz18

[ibalkisai]

‏‎#day18 #juz18 #18 #dailyinspiration #dailyquranverses #dailyquran #dailyart #dailypic #dailyinsta ‎‏ (في ‏‎Lagos, Nigeria‎‏) https://www.instagram.com/p/CBPkUnVFkx3/?igshid=132anr6bx7yn7

[quranenglishtranslation]

Quran Recitation With English Translation Reaction Juz 18 Speech

[destinationjannah]

25:28

Oh, woe to me! I wish I had not taken that one as a friend.

Whether we want to believe it or not, our friends matter. 

I remember when I was younger, I started hanging out with people who cussed, a lot. But I had this general waked out idea, that it didn’t matter because I would be the “good friend” and can somehow influence them to be better people. That didn’t happen, they continued to cuss and I was clouded a bit. 

The other day at work my friend was telling me how she could not stop saying “the bomb dot com” due to us working with another girl at work who always says it. She is not very close to her, but just with the interactions we have at work, my friend had picked up a phrase. 

Although these are very simple examples, there is power in who we are surrounded by and with this knowledge, we need to tailor our surroundings. 

There were qualities that the Prophet Muhammad (sws) said make a good friend: 

1 – Their appearance remind you of Allah

2 – When he speaks, your knowledge about Allah increases

3 - When you look at his dealings and the manner which he conducts himself, it is a reflection of accountability

#juz18

[destinationjannah]

In the taraweeh covering Juz 18, we cover Surah Muminun, Surah Nur, and Surah Furqan. One thing that I absolutely love about Surah Muminun is the first couple of ayahs where Allah is describing the believers that have attained success. Ustadh Nouman Ali Khan does an excellent job of of talking about these first couple ayahs and you can find the lecture at this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANb13kFo4iI.  One thing that always sticks out to me is how in the first ayah when Allah says: "Certainly will the believers have succeeded:", the word used for success, "aflaha" doesn't just mean any kind of success, it means success that comes after lots and lots of hard work and you'll hear him talk about in his khutbah and it just always hits me that subhanAllah, it's not easy, it takes a lot of effort. Jannah isn't free, it's not hard to get there but the battle of the self is extremely difficult, living every single day again to fight the self, to enjoin good, to stay away from wrong is something as a Muslim we have to do every single day especially those that live in societies where wrong is everywhere around them. But Allah says that they have already succeeded, and their success is like a farmer who puts in so much work and gets his reward when the harvest comes once in a year. So just like that, we will have to toil, we will have to put effort in, and try and try even if we fall down, we have to keep getting up and pushing and these are the people who Allah says have already succeeded and goes on to give their characteristics. And you know if you think about it, the feeling of being just handed something and not really working for it too much is completely different than something that you worked day and night for, and prayed and prayed for, and finally when you get it, the feeling is just indescribable. And inshAllah that's how we will feel when we get into the gates of Jannah- after pushing and pushing through the dunya, and only by Allah's mercy, we're finally there! InshAllah may Allah make us amongst those that enter those gates inshAllah! Another couple of ayahs that I loved in this portion was when Allah says: "Indeed, there was a party of My servants who said, 'Our Lord, we have believed, so forgive us and have mercy upon us, and You are the best of the merciful.' But you took them in mockery to the point that they made you forget My remembrance, and you used to laugh at them. Indeed, I have rewarded them this Day for their patient endurance - that they are the attainers [of success]." [23:109-111]  Allah is talking about a group of people who are being rewarded for their endurance and patience as they were mocked and made fun of for their faith. And Allah is telling those that mock and laugh at people that look, on that day they will be the winners for everything they endured with patience. I think sometimes when we hear being mocked for your faith, we automatically think of like islamaphobia. But you know even Muslims are often the ones that mock others and laugh at others for their faith or their attempt to get closer to Allah. If there's a sister that is trying to wear the 'abaya, and of course you know its not mandatory but she feels like it'll personally bring her closer to Allah, but all of a sudden everyone around her makes her feel like the ugly duckling or pass little snide comments, "you're wearing THAT?" etc etc. Or the person who is a little bit more cautious and strict on gender relations and interactions and then everyone around them makes them feel like party pooper, whether that's through words or actions. Or the brother who wants to stop working at a gas station and sells his store to work at like a grocery store and may be "moving down the ladder" in the dunya sense and now he is just the joke of the family even though he did it for Allah's sake. And there are so many other countless examples where we as Muslims are the ones that may be mocking other Muslims for their practice or ways. And that's extremely scary and something that I myself and all of us have to watch out for. If someone is doing something good, doing something they feel like will get them closer to Allah, we should be a support for them, we should encourage them, and help them, not discourage them inshAllah.  And on the flip side, that sister who might be the only girl in her entire school who wears hijab and gets a bunch of rude remarks, or the brother who is trying to abandon methods of haram income and turn towards the halal, or that person who chooses to start staying home now while all their friends are out at the hookah bars mingling with the opposite gender and "having a great time" and then gets made fun of by their friends- Allah will congratulate you inshAllah if it's for his sake alone. And in this ayah Allah actually gives the solution for this- patience. And patience is not a magic pill but rather its a change in attitude, we have to LIVE patience, putting your put on your tongue when you feel like lashing out to those who mock us. And at the end of day, who knows our struggles the best? Allah does; Allah is the witness of everything and of what is in people's hearts and there is no better judge than Allah inshAllah.